~~~Loki's pov~~~
It had been a little over three hours, and Linda was still unconscious, which was worrying, to say the least.
"Catherine, she'll be fine," I said, rising from my spot beside Linda's bed and turning to her as she paced back and forth. "Relax."
"I can't." She shook her head, stopping her pacing to look at me. "Not with the concerns going through my head right now."
"Like what?"
She sighed sadly before answering. "We know that Linda has Robin's ability. Or at least some variation of it. I'm just thinking about what happened to Robin once she turned."
I furrowed my brows, confused. "What happened? She seemed fine when we met her in 2043. Well, not fine, but not particularly different from the average person."
"That's because you didn't know her before she was exposed to the Terrigen. She turned at five years old, and according to her mother, she was never the same again. Before her Inhuman ability came into play, she was outgoing, talkative, and probably the most extroverted kid to ever exist. After, she barely ever spoke to anyone." She explained, wringing her hands. "Since the two were close, she only communicated with her mother."
"Okay, so she might be a bit more quiet-" She cut me off, and that's when I noticed the tears in her eyes.
~~~Catherine's pov~~~
"You don't get it. Robin shut everyone out. Everyone. All except her mother. For the simple reason that they were close. If Linda reacts the same, she will never talk to me again." My voice broke. "And that terrifies me. You don't have to worry about it because you two have the most indestructible bond I've ever seen. She adores you. You're the one she'll talk to if this happens." I swallowed hard, feeling the hot sting of tears welling up in my eyes. "I just missed out on three years with her. And now, I may never get to talk to her again."
Loki finally seemed to understand and walked over to me, placing his hands on my shoulders. "That won't happen." He told me gently, wiping away a tear I had accidentally let fall.
"How do you know?"
"Because you're her mother, and she loves you. You didn't miss out on three years with her. You were right there, by her side. If anything, I'm the one who should be concerned." He smiled softly, trying to get through to me.
I knew he was trying to hide his worry, putting it aside to help me, and I felt so guilty.
He was going through his own things at the moment. I mean, he missed three years of her life. I might not have had my memories, but I was there. He wasn't. I can't even begin to imagine how he feels right now.
And that is far more important than my worries that Linda and I might not be close anymore.
~~~Loki's pov~~~
When I said I should be concerned, I meant I am concerned. So concerned that it's actually making me feel sick.
I was absent from her life for over three years. And now there's a chance she might never talk to me again?
I just got her back. I can't afford to lose her again.
"Thank you, Loki. I think I really needed that." She gave me a small smile, but I could tell it was forced. "Now, I'm going to go back to the evidence room. I think I saw something in there that can help get us out of here. Plus, I think it'll be good for me to get out of this mindset and focus on something else."
I nodded in agreement. "I'll keep an eye on Linda. If she wakes up, I'll find you."
"I'm really glad you're back." She smiled genuinely this time as she headed for the door and looked back at me. "I love you."
I smiled back, happy I could say this again. "I love you too."
~~~Linda's pov~~~
After watching my dad find out he was adopted, a Frost Giant, and that Odin never loved him, I thought the worst was over. I honestly did.
I didn't realize how wrong I was.
The first thing I saw was Thanos.
My breathing shook at the sight of the Mad Titan, recalling the last time I had seen him and how he almost killed me.
I knew these things I was seeing were all past visions. My best guess is it's my Inhuman ability I gained through Terrigenisis.
But if that was the case, what was this a vision of? So far, I'd seen how Grandpa became Iron Man, how Mom and Dad met, and the whole Ultron incident.
Then the visions became more centered on Dad.
And if this was the same as the others, what did Thanos have to do with it?
"Accept your glorious purpose and do what I demand." His voice boomed, making me break out in a cold sweat, my heart hammering inside my chest. Was he talking to me?
The cries of pain I heard that followed proved otherwise.
I looked closer and found that there were two others with the Titan. One who stood beside Thanos, who I recognized to be Ebony Maw and the other...
No. It can't be...
"Answer him, Odinson!" Maw bellowed at the broken figure on the ground.
It was my dad.
I took a step back in denial, shaking my head.
This can't be real. This didn't happen.
And then I heard his voice, filled with pain, so much so that he could only manage a single word.
"No."
I took in a sharp breath as I fell to the ground, intense pain coursing through my body.
Only when I looked up again did I notice that it wasn't my pain. It was my dad's.
"Try again, trickster." Maw sneered, and I could sense his telekinesis at work, causing the pain to intensify.
What did he want from him? Why was he doing this?
I let out a small scream when the pain became almost too much for me to handle, tears streaming down my face.
But as quickly as the pain appeared, it vanished, and Thanos spoke again.
"Let's try this again. Serve me, fulfill your glorious purpose, and bring me the Tesseract."
What?
Time felt as if it slowed when I realized what this was about. What was happening.
This is what happened before 2012. This is what happened before New York.
I wanted to scream at Dad not to give in. Thanos couldn't get the Space Stone. But I couldn't. As much as I tried, no sound came out of my mouth.
This was a vision of the past. I couldn't change it, no matter how much I wanted to.
But he stayed strong and repeated his answer. "No."
I was proud that he was standing firm against the Titan, but I also knew what the consequence of his words would be.
I braced myself, but nothing could have prepared me for what was to come.
The pain was the most excruciating agony I could have ever imagined. It felt like I was being set on fire from the inside out and then being slashed with a thousand knives.
Thanos was torturing my dad because he refused to attack Earth. He was driving him to the brink of death, and for what?
I was screaming and sobbing, my body wracked with pain, but I still couldn't speak. I couldn't get him to stop. No matter how hard I tried.
Maw moved his hand swiftly, and I watched on as Dad convulsed and screamed in pain. Just as I had been doing.
My heart felt like it was being ripped out of my chest, but not because of any physical pain. It was the pain of knowing that my dad went through all this, and no one had any idea.
Out of nowhere, at the height of the pain and torture, everything suddenly went black. Just pitch-black nothingness. No pain, no sound, just numb. It felt like I was floating in a pool of ink, with no way to call out to anyone.
The numbness was a nice change of pace from the fiery torture, but still concerning.
I was completely alone.
That is, until I wasn't.
There was still no one in sight, but I could hear voices. They were muffled, but they were there.
I tried to focus on it and decipher who was speaking, and it got louder.
"Maybe she should. I mean, all I do is hurt her."
My heart raced as I recognized the voice. It was my dad.
But what was he talking about? And more importantly than that, who was he talking about?
"That's not true!"
Mom.
"Catherine, she suffered for years here, and that's on me."
Forget the torture and the pain. When I heard that, I truly felt like my heart was going to break.
He was talking about me.
How could he possibly blame himself for what happened? He did absolutely everything he could to make it back to me and Mom. For goodness sake, he transferred his own consciousness into a past version of himself to ensure it!
If anyone is to blame, it's me.
I'm the one who ran into the street despite my better judgment. Even if it wasn't really my choice...
It was like someone else was in control of my body, making me run into the street and stay put when I saw the truck coming.
I would never do that of my own free will. I might only be five, but I'm not dumb enough to run into a busy city street for a necklace and then proceed to stand there like a deer in headlights as I'm about to be run over!
And I've taken some consolation in that, but nothing could completely erase the guilt I felt and still feel after I saw Dad get pruned. Nothing.
As I contemplated that, I felt myself start to be pulled from the darkness and back to consciousness.
I became more aware of my surroundings as I began to wake up, including someone gripping my hand tightly.
Within a few more seconds, I was able to force my eyes open but quickly closed them again as the lighting in the room was blinding.
"Linda?" I heard a drowsy voice ask, and I instantly recognized the speaker.
I forced my eyes open again, ignoring the glaring lights, and stared up into my dad's face.
~~~Loki's pov~~~
After Catherine left, I took my place beside Linda's sleeping figure and sat in a chair next to the bed, resting my hand on her wrist to feel her steady pulse.
Just knowing that her heart was still beating and she was still breathing was enough reassurance for me.
I just had to make sure it stayed that way.
Now, I'm assuming I dozed off at some point, as I was awoken by what seemed to be Linda starting to stir.
"Linda?" My eyes widened, now fully awake.
Her eyes quickly shot open, not even looking around before staring up at me. "Dad?"
I smiled with unshed tears of joy and let out a breath of relief.
She was talking to me. She wasn't going to shut me out. And that's all I could have ever wanted.
~~~Linda's pov~~~
When I saw him, the memory of what Thanos and Maw did to him flashed through my mind, making tears well up in my eyes.
"Dad, I... I saw something and..." I tried to keep the tears at bay but failed miserably, sobbing within seconds.
His face fell instantly, and that's when I knew he knew. "I know, I know." He immediately pulled me into his arms. "I am so sorry you had to see that."
My sobs, however, didn't stop. "It was awful!" I cried into his chest, closing my eyes tightly. But when I did, flashes of his torture resurfaced and showed themselves on the back of my eyes. It was awful because I knew it was real.
He just continued to hold me as I cried, stroking my hair to try and calm me down. "It's okay. You're okay."
I was not okay. I watched him get tortured! I felt his pain!
"Dad, I'm so sorry." I sobbed, and I could feel the crying headache coming on.
"You have nothing to apologize for, sweetheart. Nothing." He shook his head, sadness evident in his voice.
And that was the last thing I heard before my sobbing got so intense that I made myself pass out.